Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

Broken Oath Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman November 3, 2024

Criterion delighted Asian film fans with The Complete Lady Snowblood a few years ago, a release which is actually overtly mentioned in one of the supplements on this disc, since Broken Oath is for all intents and purposes a "loose" remake of the venerable Toho classic. It may be 20/20 hindsight to even call the first Lady Snowblood film a "classic", since as more bonus content mentions, the original film was actually met with a decided "meh" at the time of its theatrical exhibition, and probably didn't really get a major reassessment until its obvious influence on Kill Bill: Volume 1 & 2 started gaining notice. One way or the other, there are some manifest differences in this iteration of the basic tale, though there's still a deadly woman at the center of the story. In this case it's a woman called Lotus Lin and/or Pure Lotus (Angela Mao), who is more or less genetically predisposed toward revenge, though that whole genetics angle takes a while for Lotus to actually become aware of it. Those who have enjoyed the Lady Snowblood films will no doubt find a lot to intrigue them with this "version", but even those who haven't yet seen either of the Lady Snowblood films may find this an often viscerally engaging tale, with some especially energetic fight choreography well handled by the inimitable Mao and her on screen male combatants.

It may be in some of the changes, both large and small, to original formulations in Lady Snowblood that Broken Oath understandably finds its most distinctive contributions. First of all, as effective as Meiko Kaji was in the Toho films, my hunch is many would rate Mao's athleticism and fight (and other stunt) choreography superior, and some of the hand to hand (and/or foot) skirmishes here, including some with some of those goofy weapons that tended to populate a lot of martial arts efforts in this general timeframe (here wielded by a bearded Sammo Hung), are extremely well staged and performed (editing in particular is smart and energetic). But there are other variances in both general plot points, as in Pure Lotus undergoing fitful training at a Buudhist nunnery before getting kicked out, as well as some kind of fun changes in "techniques", with Pure Lotus preferring little scorpions to get the job done.

Broken Oath Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Broken Oath is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka! Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. Eureka! tends not to provide a ton of technical information with their releases, and that's once again the case here, with only a generic "brand new 2K resotrations" for both versions listed on the back cover, in the veritable fine print. One way or the other, though, this is a really great looking presentation a lot of the time, with some especially bold primaries that resonate extremely well for virtually the bulk of the film (I'd rate the last 15 minutes or so somewhat less lustrous). While some outdoor location work can show probably understandable variances in clarity, the palette also tends to be extremely well suffused in those scenes as well. In more controlled studio bound settings, clarity improves and fine detail on costumes and props is excellent. Some of those seemingly inescapable anamorphic oddities that seem to be especially prevalent in Chinese productions in particular can show up here (I'd actually love someone to do a scholarly examination of both anamorphic processes and lenses utilizes in Asian films in the sixties and seventies, since some of these anomalies show up so frequently). Grain resolves without any issues.

Broken Oath Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Broken Oath features LPCM 2.0 Mono options in either Mandarin or English for its original Hong Kong version, and a Mandarin LPCM 2.0 Mono track for the Extended Cut. I frankly didn't notice any huge differences between the Mandarin track(s), with both sounding pretty bright on the high end in particular, something that's especially noticeable in some of the very interesting scoring choices which can kind of combine an ethnic sound courtesy of instruments like whatever the Chinese version of the shakuhachi might be with more traditional orchestral instruments. The English track is much louder, to the point that the redolent opening Golden Harvest synth fest theme has some slight distortion, though once the actual presentation begins, I didn't notice anything overly problematic. Both languages have the probably expected boxiness and somewhat hollow sound to some of the fight effects. Interestingly, the insert booklet credits "audio synch" to Brandon Bentley, though it sounded to me at least that some moments, like the opening theme, weren't lining up as I toggled between languages. Dialogue is nonetheless presented cleanly and clearly in both tracks. Optional English subtitles are available. English much louder to the point that the Golden Harvest synth fest has some distortion, though scoring (while bright) doesn't really encounter any major issues. Music is not synched between the tracks. Mandarin is bright on Extended Cut as well.

Broken Oath Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Hong Kong Theatrical Cut (HD; 1:37:57) can be played with either Mandarin or English audio.


• Audio Commentary by Frank Djeng is available for the Hong Kong Theatrical Cut.


• Extended Cut (HD; 1:42:09) features Mandarin audio.


• Audio Commentary by Mike Lieber & Arne Venema is available for the Extended Cut.


• Broken Oath: An Appreciation (HD; 11:54) is an interesting interview with Andrew Heskins exploring some of the history of the film as well as Lady Snowblood.


• Female Revenge: Scorpion vs. Katana (HD; 7:58) offers Patrick Macias focusing on some of the differences between this film and its perceived progenitor.


• Trailer (HD; 4:12)

Additionally, Eureka! includes a nicely appointed insert bookklet with writing by Gina Marchetti and Leon Hunt, along with the usual credits and viewing notes. Packaging features a slipcover.

Broken Oath Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

As is mentioned in some of the supplements on this disc, it's kind of surprising that this film turned out to be Angela Mao's veritable "swan song" at Golden Harvest, since it provides her with such an excellent showcase for her dynamic fighting skills. The story here has some interesting changes to Lady Snowblood, and in fact it's probably arguable that the film is at its best when it tends to stray from original formulations. Technical merits are generally solid and the supplements appealing. Recommended.